Conservation district taking gardening out of the box

Hill County Conservation District Administrator Kat Whitaker said Wednesday at the conservation district’s monthly meeting that the district has started a project to teach participants about conservation and gardening.

The district’s Outside of the Box Project is a community-based project to create an outdoor classroom for children and adults at the community garden at District 4 Human Resources Development Council at 2229 Fifth Avenue.

“This is great for the community,” Whitaker told the board.

“I absolutely believe that we will not only see growth in conservation, agriculture, as well as backyard gardening, but we will also witness individual resiliency and personal growth for all involved,” a document she gave to the Hill County Conservation District board said.

The conservation district has rented three plots at HRDC’s garden for the Outside of the Box Project.

The district rented the approximately 40-foot-by-40-foot plots. They are open from this month to the month of October.

The three lots will be broken into different sections, she said, separating vegetables, flowering plants and grains.

Whitaker said they cannot break ground yet, but Downtown Garden and Bob’s Greenhouse, which are donating to the project, are starting seeds so the the plants are ready once the weather conditions have improved.

She said that the plots are open to the public and that people of any age can become involved. She added that she would like to encourage people to volunteer even if it is only for an hour or two each time they go. She will need volunteers through the year, from start to finish, she said.

She added that she is happy to volunteer herself when needed, although she still has other responsibilities to Conservation District and wants the community to be involved.

“I want this to be for the years to come,” she said. “… If it’s done right it will grab hold.”

The program has no charge, she said, and children are invited to join, although parents will need to give permission prior to the children’s involvement if the parents are unable to join them in volunteering.

Volunteers from the community would be responsible to help plant, water and harvest side-by-side with the children involved, she said. People also can donate gardening tools, she said, but participating will only cost time, at the minimum, to be involved. She said if a person is unable to physically garden they are still able to share their knowledge and could be a guest at one of the classes that will be offered throughout the year.

The classes are open to children and adults, and provide opportunity to learn about soil conservation and health, she said, but also to learn about planting techniques, composting and food storage throughout the year. She added that they might also be interested in introducing some things to do with bees in the project.

She said she would also like the children involved to learn how to cook with some of the things they have grown, giving them something that they can bring home for their family. She added that no prizes or awards of any kind will be given out during this project, just people gardening for the love of gardening.

“It’s pretty exciting,” she said.

This would be a beautiful legacy, Whitaker said.

She said other donors include Walmart, North 40 Outfitters, Gregoire Insurance, HUB International and a few private citizens.

A few of the organizations that have agreed to be involved are the Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line, Youth Reporting Center, Youth Dynamics, Child Bridge, 4-H, a couple of teachers and parents, grandparents and students in the community.

“Our children are thriving and giving back, encouraging the health of our soil and selves — a legacy to be proud of in the making,” she said in her presentation.

The Out of the Box Project required no vote this meeting because it was already approved by the board.

During its monthly business, the Hill County Conservation District board scheduled a local working group meeting April 3 at 3 p.m. followed by its monthly meeting at 6 p.m.

The board also went through its annual plan of work for this year and Outside the Box was added in Goal One under other education initiatives.

The board also agreed that it will continue publishing quarterly newsletters including on Facebook.

One of the board members said a site is left where a car body is in the Milk River. The car bodies, in the past, were used to retain dirt and prevent erosion although over the past years the conservation board has been working to remove these car bodies.

At the meeting the board agreed to also further explore funding opportunities for the Fresno Road project, classifying it as an ongoing project under Goal Four in their plan.